Shaker-dispenser



Oct. 21, 1952 5, s SLYK 2,614,734

' SHAKER-DISPENSER Filed July 26, 1950 F|G.3 FIG.4

INVENTOR: S-TA NLEY S. S LYK JMMM ATT'YS Patented Oct. 21, 1952 I SHAKER-DISPENSER I Stanley S. Slyk, Chicago, Ill., assignor of one-half to. Frederick J. Spencer and Edward Spencer,

bothof Chicago,

1 Application July 26,, 1950, Serial No.

Claims. (01. 222-4565) 1 I This invention relates to shakers, such as salt shakers, and similar devices for sprinkling granular condiments which have a tendency to absorb moisture and become sticky or to cake; and particularly to improvements in the construction of periorated ends of such devices through which the material is dispensed.

The main objects of this invention are to provide an improved shaker which will readily dispense'salt or the like whether or not the material 'is damp or caked; to provide an improved construction for the dispensing end of shaker devices; to provide such a. device having a multiplicity of shearing edges which automatically separate granules of the material being dispensed for discharge through the shaker openings;v to provide an improved dispensing portion for shakers in which each opening or perforation is provided with a shearing element for edgewise engagement with the mass of material in the shaker; to provide such a device which automatically controls the direction of the material dispensed as it leaves the shaker; and to provide an improved non-clogging shaker that is simple inconstruction and extremely cheap to manufacture. x I

A specific embodiment of this invention I is shown in. the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is. a top plan view of a shaker having a separable dispensing cap in which the improved construction is employed. I

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of on line 2-2. of Fig." 1.

the same as taken 2 the shaker head when the material is damp or sticky, and, therefore, offer only a partial, often ineffective, answer to the problem. Other previous shaker devices have: employed chemicalor' moisture absorbing means intended to keep the material in the shaker dry and'to prevent caking; I however, in these devices the moisture'absorbing means must be periodically dried or replaced and inattention is apt to result in inoperativeness. The present invention is-intended to solve the problem by purely mechanical means. I

In the form shown inthe drawings, the inven' tion is applied to a detachable shaker cap I, adapted for threaded engagement over the open end of a container 2, in the usual and well-known manner. and as shown, the improved construction is in that portion of the shaker cap which contains the perforations or dispensing openings. The cap and the container may be made of any suitable materials and formed by any suitable means; and it will" be understood that the dispensing end of the shaker may be either separable, as shown, or 'an integral part of the con- I tainer body. I

As shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 5f, the improved shaker head is annular in shape and is formed Fig. 3' is a top plan view, like, Fig. 1, showing a shaker havinga modified form of the improved dispensing cap. 1 I

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the same'as taken on line I 4 of Fig. 3, and I Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary bottom side view or the dispensing cap shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the view b'eing taken as on line 5- 5:'of Fig. 2'.

The problem or providing a shaker-dispenser that will not clog in humid weather and which will dispense materials such as salt, whether-(1r not the materials are. damp or caked, has. long been recognized and many attempts to provide adequate shaker devices have been made. However, previous devices, employing strictly mechanical means, have, depended entirely upon the action of fixed bars, pins, posts or. other means.

disposed to intercept the mass of the. material I within the shaker and break it upbetore'it reaches the discharge ordispensing openings.

S uch arrangements, while perhaps suitable for calzcd material, result in additional clogging oi" with two concentric inwardly extending cup-dike depressions 3 and 4. one'within theother, which, on the inner side of the shaker head, have a stepped configuration providing a pair of substantially flat annular shoulders or ledges 5 and I 6, substantially normal to the shaker axis and each about one-eighth to one-quarter inch high according to the shaker size. The perforations or dispensing openings 7 and Bare formed in these ledges or shoulders, respectively, and are. located to intersect the outer edges of the ledges, as shown in Fig. 5. Preferably, the openings or perforations are substantially semi-circular so that the edges 9 and I0 oi the axially. extending side wens of the ledges, which form the out'er margins of the openings 1' and B, will have a] maximum length and yet permit the openings. to be of adequate area Qor size for the material to be dispensed. The size of these openings may be as desired: however; the openings should not be substantiallylarger than what would be normal for dispensing the material when in its ordinary dry, free-running state. In th modified form shown in Figs. 3 and 4, j the dispenser head or cap I is formed with an annular. centrally located, flat-bottomed charl- I ne'l ll, which, on the inside'of the dispenser head provides a ring-like, inwardly projecting ridge or j boss l2. In this form the perforations l3 and H are disposed along both the inner and outer margins of the ridge l 2 and are made to intersect the edges of the ridge in the same manner as the perforations] and 8 shown in Fig. 5. Preferably, the inner perforations I 4 are staggered relative to the outer perforations [3 in order to provide the maximum number of openings in the ridge surface? As in the case ofv the form shown in Fig. 5, the axially extending edges of the ridgeside walls form the outermost margin of each of the openings [3 and i4.

In either of the forms of the invention herein shown, the edges of the side walls, which'form part of the periphery of each of the dispensing openings, provide knife-like shearing portions against which the material to be dispensed is thrown during the shaking or dispensing. opcration. These edges serve to cut off and separate the crystal or grains of the material, as inertia carries the material mass "beyond the corners of the edges, which grains then pass through the openings to be dispensed or sprinkled in the usual manner. This process is repeated each timethe shaker is manipulated with the usual. up and down shaking'motion, and, each time the mass or body of the material in theshaker .is thrown tothe shaker. head and against the corners of the shoulders, a shearing or cutting action 00- curs at each of the dispensing openings. The result is that, even though the material being dispensed is damp or caked,. the shaker head openings will not becomeclogged and the, material will be delivered uniformly.

,Also,.because the shoulders or ledges on the inside of the shaker head are usually formed by aninward depression on the outside of the head,

the exterior walls of theformed portion serve to direct the spray of the dispensed material inthe direction of the shaker axis and prevent the material from scattering laterally over a wide area,

as is a common occurrence with ordinary shaker devices. 7

The main advantages of this invention reside in the construction of the areas in which the per.- forations are formed in theshaker head whereby eachopening has a relatively sharp corner edge as a part of its boundary. and thus functions like the end of a hollow punch to separate small ,pOr-. tions ofmaterial from a mass; in the fact that the vmaterialto be dispensed will be. delivered regularly even thoughit be sticky, in lumps, or

caked, as is often the case with ordinary table;

salt; and in the construction. whereinthe perforated area is depressed and henceprotected against becoming soiled or bent. Other advantages lie in the simplicity of the improved shaker construction whereby the-de--- vice may be manufactured easily andcheaply and hence sold at a relatively low cost.

.Although two specific-embodiments.ofthis invention are herein shown and described it will be understood that details ofthe construction shown may be altered or: omitted without departing from the spirit of this invention asdefined by the following claims.

I claim'z...

1. A shaker comprising a hollow body having.

an-end wal1,.an inwardly projecting portion on said end wall spaced from thesides of the body and having a pair of angularly: disposed. inter.-

secting surfaces one of which is inwardly-facing, and the inwardly facing. surface of said portion haying a plurality ofperforations each of which is partially, bounded by the edge of the other surface.

2. A shaker comprising a hollow body having an end wall provided with an inwardly projecting portion spaced from the sides of the body, said portion having a flat surface substantially nor mal to the body axis and a side wall extending from said fiat surface toward the said end wall, said fiat surface having a plurality of perforations, and .each'of said perforations having the adjacent edge of said side wall as a portion of its periphery.

- 3. A shaker comprising a hollow body having ,an end wall, an inwardly projecting portion on said end wall having angularly disposed surfaces meeting to provide an' inwardly facing shoulder substantially normal to the axis of the body and a side wall extending in the axially outward direction from saidshoulder, and the surface of said shoulder having a plurality of perforations each ,of which is partially bounded by the edge of said side wall.

4. Ashaker comprising a. hollow body-having an end wall, angularly disposed surfaces on the; inner side of said end wall meeting to provide a plurality of inwardly facing shoulders, each of said shoulders being substantially normal to the axis .of thehollow body and the respective meeting surface providing a side wall extending in the axial direction from the shoulder, and the surface of each of said shoulders having a plurality of perforations each ofwhich is partially bounded by the edge of the respeotiveshoulderside wall.

5. A shaker comprising ahollow, body having an end wall, said end wall having a depression in its outer surface and a coincident projection onits inner surface, said projection having-an inwardly facing surface and a side Wall extending axially therefrom, and said inwardly facing surface having a plurality of perforations each i of which is partiallybounded by the edge of said side wall..

6.,A shaker comprising a hollow.bo dy having an end wall, said end wall having a pairofconcentric depressions in its outer surface, one within the other, the inner depression being of. smaller 1 area and greater depth than the outer depression, 1 and the inner side of said end wall having. con

centric ,inwardly projecting portions coincident with said depressions and providing inwardly facing shoulders each having an axially extending side wall, said shoulders each'havingav pluwhich is partially rality of perforations each of bounded by the edge of the respective side wall.'.;.'-

'7. A shaker comprising a hollow body having an end wall, said end wall having a channel in itsouter surface and a ridge-like pro'jectionfon its inner surface directly opposite said channel and of substantially the same contour, said projection having an inwardly facing. surface and-side sur-.

faces extending towardsaid endwall, and said inwardly. facing surface .having a plurality. of "perforations each of whichis located. to be partially bounded by the-edge of one of the said side surfaces' i mounting on the open end of a container body, and an axially projecting portion on the inner side of said cover member terminating in an 111-- wardly facing surface and having a side surface extendingv in the axial direction from the margin of said inwardly facing surface toward the plane of said cover member, said inwardly facing surface having a plurality of axially opening perforations therein each of which is partially bounded by the adjacent edge of said sidesurface.

10, A shaker comprising a hollow body having an end wall, an inwardly projecting portion on said end wall spaced from the sides of the body and having a pair of angularly disposed inter- 15 1,411,594

line of intersection of said surfaces.

STANLEY S. SLYK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 780,292 Jones Jan. 17, 1906 1,243,836 Hawkes Oct. 23, 1917 Sweet Apr. 4, 1922 

